Monday, December 11, 2017

It's time to play "catch up"! You *may* have noticed I haven't been blogging much at ALL lately. Life has just been too busy, plain and simple. Between the family being sick non-stop since the third day of September (not even kidding - I think there has only been two weeks where both kids were at school all 5 days! ... even KODA has been sick a few times!!), me now working full-time at my Stampin' Up! business (the goal is to earn that trip to the Greek Isles!!) and getting ready for Christmas classes (and the big day itself!) there has been very little time for blogging. So! Rather than stress about it I'm doing one "catch up" post of all the projects I have wanted to share with you over the last few months but fell through the cracks. Sound like a good plan? I think so!

For the sake of time I'm just posting the pictures. If you have questions about any of them don't hesitate to leave me a comment and I'll get back to you!

Many of the projects are CASEd (copied) from other talented crafters and demonstrators. A good reminder that you don't always have to reinvent the wheel - I great project is a great project!

I hope you find a few you like ... and I hope to be more consistent in my blog postings moving forward,

Have a stampy day!

Tam

Trim Your Stocking

Carols of Christmas Rich Razzleberry

Colorful Seasons Winter

Tranquil Tulip Case (from Mary Fish at www.stamppretty.com)

Cookie Cutter Christmas

Tranquil Tulips Simplicity

Merry Patterns (CASE from Billie Moan)

Foil Doilies any color (use a brayer to ink the back of the doilies in any color you need!)

Sunday, November 26, 2017

HAPPY SUNDAY!

The finish line is in sight!!! Just ... keep ... swimming ....

Today I have a table at our local Community Hall Christmas Bazaar, Thursday I have my kids "Gift for Mom" class and then I'm pretty much home free! Whoot!! I will still have a December Card Class, my monthly Team Meeting Class and likely one more Craft Night but for the most part the "big, crazy stuff" will be done.

December? You better believe I'll be sitting down and taking a long hard look at my schedule, my business and how/when I do things so I don't get this crazy ever again. Bit off a bit much this fall, I MUST say!

Phew!

Well! Anyway - just a quick post today as I need to start packing up for my Bazaar but I wanted to make sure I got the word out that TOMORROW THERE IS FREE SHIPPING ON ALL ORDERS!!!!

Tomorrow only (Monday) there is FREE SHIPPING! on all orders placed through my online store. Whoot!

Want just one or two items? Save the minimum $9.95 shipping fee!

Want LOTS of items? Save the 10% shipping fee!

Your order will be delivered directly to your door and it should arrive 7 business days later (barring backorders).

Tomorrow morning you need to hop over to my 24/7 online store and get what you want under your Christmas Tree for less!

As always, orders OVER $200 will get 10% back in free hostess spending.

As always, orders UNDER $200 who use the above hostess code at the checkout will receive a free gift from me (you must make sure you have given Stampin' Up! permission for them to give me your email address so I know who to send the gift TO! When you set up your account make sure you check the permission box!)

Friday, November 17, 2017

OK - if you haven't found my business Facebook page, "Tamara's Paper Trail", or my Instagram account @tamaraspapertrail you need to! As you can see, I have totally SUCKED at blogging lately and I can't see it getting better in the next few weeks! I DO apologize. I just don't have enough hours in the day lately! Between the family CONSTANTLY being sick, running to doctors, picking up meds, walking Doodles, planning classes and on and on and on and on it just always seems to fall to the bottom of the "to-do" pile. Now don't get me wrong, I'm not whining about the crazy that is my life - I do love the fast pace of it but I really am just holding on by my fingertips lately and dealing with whatever fresh crazy each day presents on a "this needs attention NOW" basis! (like the "low tire pressure warning light that just HAD to pop on my dash when I had all day back-to-back appointments yesterday!)

Seriously. Crazy busy! No having said that, I DO seem to manage quick posts on Instagram and Facebook so you NEED to be on my pages to keep in the loop!

Did you hear (likely from OTHER demos!) about the new Stamparatus tool SU is releasing?? Ya. You didn't hear it from me (at least not in details - not time to send out the email!!). I THINK I posted a quick FB post about it ... but that was a few days ago and that is a bit of a blur in the rearview mirror! IF you read about it somewhere you may have ALSO heard that they sold out of reservations in about 15 minutes! SO! If you want to be on top of everything jump on FB, jump on instagram and find me there!

No time to chat - it's noon and I'm just about ready to start my day. Kids are both home sick, I've walked Koda, already take kid #2 to the doctor, picked up meds, making soup for kid #1 and have a party to prep for. No rest for THIS mamma!

Here is a great video to watch on the Trim Your Stocking Thinlits. I LOVE these things ... but you'd know that if you follow me on Facebook ( ... see what I did there? *lol*)

Hope YOUR clan is healthier than mine ... and that you have a stampy day!

Monday, November 6, 2017

Sorry I didn't post my Blends Promotion yesterday. I kinda THOUGHT I was being a little too ambitious when I said I'd post it yesterday, given that I would be up late dining and dancing at the Banff Springs Hotel! Oh SURE I'd be up "working" after we gained an hour of extra sleep instead of lying in bed staring at the beautiful Rocky Mountains. Duh, Tam. A LITTLE ambitious? *lol*

So hey! (Brief tangent here ...). Guess who was the winner of an AMAZING prize at the Dinner/Dance last night??? Yes! Little Ol' ME! Long story short - all of the employees and spouses of Spartan were entered in an Elimination Draw for some GREAT prizes (about 1,400 people in total, I understand). The last 10 names NOT drawn would win a prize. I was in the last 10 ... then the last 5 ... THEN the last TWO! Actually, my name was the VERY LAST NAME left in the draw ... but we had decided that the name that was drawn out of the last two would be the winner ... and my name WASN'T drawn, so I came in second. SECOND ... out of 1,400 people!!! I was on stage (in front of, oh, about 700 people!) and my adrenalin was through the ROOF! Hand were shaking, whole 9 yards *lol*. What did I win? TWO nights at the Banff Springs Hotel plus $100 Excursion Gift Certificate plus a $200 dinner gift certificate! Whoot!! The #1 prize was a $3,000 West Jet Voucher plus two flights anywhere in Canada plus 4 VIP Lounge passes! Now, whilst that would be an AMAZING prize to win I think I'm happier with what I got! I have won an airfare trip once before and although that was GREAT, I still ended up spending a LOT on hotel, food and so on. The beauty of the prize I won is it's very "doable" for Craig and I to run away for a weekend, not have to pay thousands for the kids to come along and a portion of the cost of food and entertainment is included - we just have to drive there!

It was a FABULOUS weekend getaway and I'm looking SO forward to going back and doing it again in the New Year. I'm thinking in April, for our Anniversary.

So! That's my "brief" tangent hee hee. Back to my Promotion ...

Blends. Did you watch the videos I posted Saturday?? Trust me. You want these in your stash. They are Ah-MAZING! Having said that, I recognize that getting all 12 duos, PLUS the Ivory and Bronze Blends PLUS the Color Lifter adds up to quite a large investment.

On top of THAT you are going to want the Color Me Happy Stamp Set and Card Kit, which is another $52 ($60.06 for the clear set bundle). Grand total = $247.17

Sooooooo ... how about I reduce that cost for you?

What if you could get all the Blends for just $166.32 (saving you $24.79) AND you will have a ONE IN FIVE chance of getting the $60 Color Me Happy Stamp Set and Card Kit for FREE??

I only need FIVE savvy Canadian crafters to make this promotion work.

"Well HECK, Tamara! That would be an AMAZING deal. I will save $25 and have a chance to win an awesome $60 prize??!! I'm IN! What do I have to do??", I hear you cry.

Well! All you have to do is:

Between today and midnight, Friday, November 17th ...

message me, text me or reply to this post that you are "in"

either order the 12 Blends through my online store *** HERE *** and enter the Hostess code CEJXYSWA at the checkout (and they will be shipped directly to your door) or I will order them for you (and they will be delivered to my house)

I will order you the Ivory, Bronze and Color Lifter AND

your name will be entered into my draw for the Color Me Happy Stamp Set and Card Kit!

If you are in the Edmonton Area the extra pens (and set/kit, if you are the winner) will be delivered to my house and I will make arrangements to get them to you. If you are elsewhere in Canada I will have them sent to you separately).

Good deal, no?

Trust me. Once you try these blendable markers out you WILL want them all. This is a chance to GET them all, save yourself $25 AND get in on a great draw (with very good odds ... 1 in 5!)

Saturday, November 4, 2017

I'm coming to you today from the stunningly beautiful Banff Springs Hotel in Banff. Yes ... I'm away AGAIN! Sheesh! I can't even believe it myself! Fall is ALWAYS my busiest season with life AND with work. In past years I hit the ground running Sept 3 (first day of school) and CRAWL to the finish line around Dec 1 when all the school and work chaos die down ... I take a day or two to catch my breath and then sprint to December 24th, when I collapse in a heap of smudged makeup and slept-in clothes *lol* Apparently I didn't think that was enough this year, and felt the need to throw in four mini holidays just to make things more interesting!

*lol* Ok, it didn't REALLY go down that way and I couldn't/WOULDN'T change these get aways even if I could/wanted to!

Reliving old memories and making new ones with my Dad in Chaffey's Lock in September.

A weekend in beautiful Banff with the love of my life and THE best husband a girl could ever hope to have (seriously. How many husbands ENCOURAGE you to go into the jewellery store at the Banff Springs Hotel and tells you to buy something??!!)

Now although I'm away I'm still working *sort of*. Sitting in the Rundle Lounge with some **special coffee** and listening to the live music ... enjoying myself completely and blogging (yes, it's TECHNICALLY working ... but I love what I do so that makes it fun, right? Hee hee.)

Anyway - I took a loooong time working on a promotion for you with the new "Stampin' Blends". (I MAY have taken a long time just so I could have an extra special coffee *lol*.

I think I'll save the promotion for tomorrow (Craig's meetings are just wrapping up and I have to go get all fancy for dinner!)

Today I'll share all the Stampin' Up! promotional videos so you can get familiar with the Blends - their features, benefits and how to use them. They are alcohol based blending markers (are you familiar with Copic markers?). These are a less expensive, non-refillable blending marker in exclusive Stampin' Up! colors.

Why not check out the videos while having a "special coffee" yourself!

Now ... click HERE to see the promotional brochure with all the specifics on colors and costs and the exclusive kit and stamp set you can get to USE the markers with. Of course MANY of our current (and retired) stamp sets are PERFECT to use with the new tools.

So I'll leave it there for now.

Pop in again tomorrow to read all about the promotion that I am offering that will help you get these markers into your Craft Cave, save you money AND get you in the draw for some free "stuff"!

Saturday, October 21, 2017

Right! My mission is to get caught up on all my OLD projects! So ... rather than sharing ONE project today I'm sharing three, all using the same stamp set, This Little Piggy. I just LOVE these little fellas! Check them out ...

Aren't they just the CUTEST???

This is the stamp set used ... $27 CDN clear mount; $37 CDN wood mount

I have plans to use this set (along with Bella and Friends and Pretty Kitty) to do fundraiser cards for the Edmonton Humane Society. That's the PLAN, anyway. Add it to the "to-do" list!

I can't take credit for the ideas of these cards. In fact, the first one (my personal fave) is a direct CASE from fellow demonstrator Diane Gibbs.

Yes, I had to stamp the pigs on scrap paper and fussy cut them "old school" with my paper snips but just LOOK how cute the final project is! SO worth a little cutting!! Now ... what colors did I use? Hmmm - I made them so long ago I have to think .... I stamped the piggies on Blushing Bride (I believe) and then added a little depth of color/shadowing with the same color using my blender pen. Pretty sure I used Soft Suede for the brown shading. When you want to add shadowing just add a little color to the left of the stamped image. Easy!

The next two cards were inspired by a number of different projects I had seen on Pinterest ..

I used the Woodgrain embossing folder on the card base, punched out a 2 1/2" circle (I think ...maybe a 2") for the piggy and used Soft Suede card stock with my Classic Label Punch ($23.50 CDN) for the fence. The sentiment (totally PERFECT for this card!) is from Here For You ($24 CDN clear; $33 CDN wood)

The last card ...

...is similar to the first, I just punched the hole through the top layer using my Circle framelits rather than with the punch (the punch doesn't reach far enough to put the hole where I wanted it).

They are all SO cute! This set isn't the one to get if you want to mass produce cards - the coloring/shading will slow you down ... but it IS a great set and it's one I will keep in my stash for sure!

If you are in Canada and want it shipped to your door pop on over to my online store here . If your order is under $200 and you enter the hostess code VU6P7GYW at the checkout I will mail you a gift! (make sure that your account gives Stampin' Up! permission to provide me with your name and address! If you have checked off "no contact" I can't see who has ordered in order to thank them and/or send them a gift!)

So that's it for today. I have to stroll Doodles then pack up my gear for a road trip! I'm off to Calgary to do a Ladies Night Christmas Card Class with my dear friend Kris and her friends. Whatever YOU get up to this weekend I hope you have a stampy time!

Wednesday, October 18, 2017

Look at ME posting two days in a row! ... makes you wonder what I'm procrastinating on, doesn't it?? *lol*

Well ... truth be told there are DOZENS of things I'm procrastinating on, as usual! My life starts to implode beginning tomorrow as my calendar of events just keeps growing! It's a great problem to have, as that means business is booming and I'm well on my way to earning that incentive trip to Greece (!!!) but it also means I have to work my tail off ... and I'm procrastinating on all that needs to be done. All good, though. I realize I NEED the pressure to actually stay focused and Get 'Er Done. Only problem is it's a fine line between pressure and mind-crushing STRESS and I often fly a *little* too close to the sun! Part of my charm, I think (at least that's what I tell myself around 3 am when I can't sleep from stress! hee hee)

ANYwhoooooo .... let's check out a card I CASEd from Jane Caines over at "inthecatcave" (who hoo! I remembered to flag where I CASEd it from! Go me!)

Jane's card is much more "polished" than mine but I wanted a SUPER quick and easy card and this fits the bill perfectly! It's not often I make a no-layer card!

This is simply made with our Whisper White card stock.

Grab your Tempting Turquoise ink pad, drip a bit of reinker in the open lid.
Grab your Aquapainter, pick up some ink and scribble a blue blob on the card stock.
Grab your sentiment "Just Breathe is from Colorful Seasons - a MUST have bundle!) and stamp it in Archival Black ink
Cut out the chair from the Colorful Season Thinlits, pop it up on 2 mini dimensionals, add some bling and BAM! You're done.

I *may* have whipped up 12 of these bad boys to have on hand. It seems EVERYONE is really stressed out these days and I know I could send at least 6 of them out to friends this week (and about 3 to myself!)

The only thing you need to keep in mind is that the whisper white card stock will get wet and soak up that ink FAST so you really only get one shot at it! You can't move the ink around, like you can on the glossy white paper or our watercolor paper. It's all good, though - just have a quick scribble! The more "organic" or "rustic" the better!

That's it for now - if I procrastinate on stirring that hamburger much longer it's gunna burn so off I go!

Tuesday, October 17, 2017

This little cutie is one of the cards we are making in class tonight. SUPER quick, SUPER easy and VERY duplicatable. Yes, I will be making a LOT of these for Christmas this year!

I got the inspiration from fellow demostrator ... oh for Heaven's Sake ... WHEN will I learn to note these things down?? I totally took the idea from someone and can't find the post! Sorry to the creator!!

It uses the "Card Front Builder" Thinlit Dies (for the trees).

The sentiment comes from Holly Berry Happiness

The Designer Paper in behind the trees is from the Merry Little Christmas DSP

The top layer is 4 3/4" x 3 1/2"

Sequins are attached with glue dots and the fine tip glue pen.

Easy Peasy!

Next up - HOLIDAY PICS (I still have 6 minutes!)

What can I say about my Mom/Daughter one-on-one vacation to Disneyland with Alicia? It was absolutely EVERYTHING I hoped it would be. Oh sure, the line up were too long, there were too many strollers and 16 hours of walking hurts my back ... but ya know what? Didn't bother me a bit. I was smiling the whole time and enjoyed every single minute of it.

I highly recommend taking a trip with YOUR children at some point. Where you go doesn't matter - it could be the Motel 6 down the road. It just matters that you spend time together. One-on-one.

It matters.

Here are some pice of our FABULOUS time away ...

That me OUTTA here! With 1 minute to spare!

I'll get back into the groove of posting projects ... I hope ... a BUSY month playing catchup after all my little get-aways (and one more to come in early November!)

About Me

Hello!
I am a SAHM to two GREAT kids, a wife to a GREAT man and a Stampin’ Up! demonstrator living in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. I LOVE all things crafty and I absolutely LOVE what I do! Please know that the content in this blog is my sole respoinsibility as an Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator and the use of and content of this blog is not endorsed by Stampin' Up!
Thank you for popping in - I hope you find a project you like and leave inspired!